"Just Lather, That's All" and the shaving scene from "The Color Purple" have similar conflicts. The protagonists of the story are both having to shave the beard of someone whom they don't particularly care for. In "Just Lather, That's All" the barber is a rebel, and it just so happens that the enemy comes in for a shave. In "The Color Purple" Celie was forced to marry a man who never wanted her in the first place. He constantly abuses her both physically, mentally, and emotionally. While the antagonists are being shaved, they are both in a very vulnerable situations. Captain Torres is so bold that he takes off his weapons and sits down knowing that the barber was an enemy and he could possibly be killed. Both Mista and Captain Torres taunted the protagonists as they are doing their jobs. Deep down inside, Captain Torres and Mista knew that they weren't going to kill them.
The Barber
The old barber in Shiraz
Celie Gannon author of 'Celie's Book Of Quotes' Vi...They knew they didn't have the audaciousness to kill them.
The two sagas also had a few differences. The setting for one was different. "Just Lather, That's All" took place in a barbershop, one hot afternoon in Colombia, while the shaving scene in "The Color Purple" took place on the porch one hot afternoon in the rural south of the United States. The conflicts that they were having were also a bit different. Despite the fact that they were both battling somewhat with themselves, Celie didn't stop herself from killing Mista, Shug did. If Shug hadn't stopped Celie from slitting Mista's throat, she would have killed him. The barber on the other hand was constantly going back and forth in his mind as to whether or not he should kill Captain Torres or just lay low...